“The chain is unbreakable.”
“But your neck is not.”
I stiffened at that remark.
Lenore chuckled softly. “I’m only saying if that necklace were to ever get hung up on something, what would happen to your neck?”
“It’s long enough that I can slip it off if that were to happen, but thanks for thinking of ways to avoid my decapitation. That’s not always the first thing that comes to mind when I’m admiring someone’s necklace.”
She savored her drink. “One has to be practical. You can’t always keep something you love close if it might be the death of you.”
I set down my empty glass and glanced out the window. “Where are we going?”
“It’s a surprise.”
As the car turned, grassy fields came into view. A tree here and there, sometimes a bench. Eventually we came to a stop.
“Oh goody. We’re here.” Lenore waited for the driver to open her door.
I shoved my door open and climbed out. Small waves lapped against the shore, and though the water was blue, there was a murky smell to it.
Lenore hooked her arm in mine and led me toward the shore. “I prefer the ocean and salty air on my tongue, but this will have to do.”
“Isn’t this a little blinding for you?”
The sun shimmered on the water like a million mirrors.
“Nonsense. I’m an old Vampire. When you’re my age, you simply build up a tolerance for the intolerable.”
The driver waited by the car as we walked down a gentle slope of grass until we reached the muddy banks. Lenore left her high heels in the grass, lifted the hem of her dress with one hand, and walked close enough for the waves to splash over her feet.
I stayed closer to dry land, not wanting stinky lake mud to cake all over my black sneakers. Strong wind plastered my hair to one side, but damn, it felt good.
“Viktor didn’t know about your little financial arrangement, did he?” she asked.
“He’s the boss. He knows everything.”
Lenore smiled at me. “You’re a better liar than he is. Why do you think I prefer meeting people face-to-face instead of using these confounded telephones? I can pick up tiny fluctuations in their breathing and heart rate, but to be honest, most people who lie give the same exact signals.”
I stepped onto a flat rock and faced her. “Does it really matter? We work cases nonstop, and Viktor’s too busy to know every detail. He trusts us.”
A few tendrils freed themselves from the braided work of art on Lenore’s head. “Maybe I find it curious that he protects his people… even from me. What does a woman have to do to gain that man’s trust?”
“Seduce him?” I said facetiously.
“Is that what you do?”
I stepped off the rock and strolled away. “I don’t use my sexuality to get what I want.”
“Yes you do. We all do. Their weakness is our power.” She matched my stride, her toes filthy with mud and tiny pebbles stuck to them.
“Maybe that’s true for some men, but that’s not how it works with Viktor. I earned his trust by doing the job.”
“Perhaps I’ve been going about this the wrong way. I thought he wanted a woman of equal power, but maybe he’s old-fashioned and desires a little dominance.”
“I’m not interested in your love life, and to be honest, I think there are other men who are more your speed. I know he comes across as polished, but Viktor’s a down-to-earth kind of guy. His version of fun is having a drink and telling boring stories about his boyhood. He likes sweater vests, hates electricity, tells bad jokes, and loves to jog.”
“And exactly what kind of man do you think is my match?”
